Showing posts with label Highlander. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Highlander. Show all posts

Monday, December 07, 2009

War of the Worlds: Goliath -- Coming in 2010



Next year will see the release of Tripod Entertainment's animated Steampunk film WAR OF THE WORLDS: GOLIATH. The film's premise is that 15 years after the Martian's failed attack on the earth in 1900 the aliens return to continue their attempted conquest of Earth. Much has changed in the intervening 15 years, as the industrious have reverse engineered a substantial amount of Martian technology. This sets the stage for a more evenly balanced conflict between the two worlds. The film's trailer hints at what the film will offer. The film will star geek favorites Adam Baldwin, Peter Wingfield, and Adrian Paul.



GOLIATH isn't the first WAR OF THE WORLDS sequel to make its way through the Hollywood entertainment assembly line. In 1988, there was a 2 season syndicated television series based on the premise that the Martians who invaded during the George Pal film merely went into hibernation and didn't die when they collapsed. The series aired in the US on Fox, and it too starred Adrian Paul (during the 2nd season).



The narrative premise of GOLIATH is a promising one and the show looks to have combined the best of the Steampunk genre with some elements of the classic animated television series STAR BLAZERS. Instead of a giant space faring WWII battleship, we have a giant sky spanning battle-zeppelin. I think the battle-zeppelin wins hands down.

Steampunk is a genre that has been gaining some momentum over the past few years. It combines "Vernian" futuristic technology with a Victorian/Edwardian time frame. I would posit that the first iteration of Steampunk was the Castle Falkenstein roleplaying game by Mike Pondsmith of R. Talsorian Games (publishers of the Cyberpunk rpg) and that the genre gained real traction with the novels The Difference Engine by Gibson and Sterling and The Prestige by Priest.

It has been noted in the comments that I am in error with regards to the origin of the term and genre of Steampunk. I will concede the term's origin, but I would take issue with some of those items retroactively classified into the genre. One could classify Spenser's The Faerie Queene as Epic Fantasy, but one would be misapplying a term for fantasy fiction in the post-Morris era. The same holds for Wild, Wild, West which shares as much with James Bond as it does with Steampunk (specifically). One might as well classify Ian Fleming's brilliant Chitty Chitty Bang Bang as Steampunk. Wikipedia and "internet citations" from Locus be damned!

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Flash Gordon and Highlander to See Big Screen

It seems that Hollywood is hell bent on destroying my childhood and teen years.

First, they made a campy version of STARSKY AND HUTCH which, like the Tom Hanks DRAGNET, was entertaining but made a mockery of something that was at times pretty dark. Okay, that applies more to DRAGNET than S&H, but the Michael Mann episodes of STARSKY AND HUTCH hold up very well and are good neo-noir.

Then they made the new FLASH GORDON and BIONIC WOMAN television series, which are unarguably awful. FLASH is so bad that watching it must surely be classified as the punishment that Satan gives Judas when his jaw is getting a little tired.

Then I found out that Seth Rogan was going to play Brit Reid in the new GREEN HORNET movie. Ummm...the Green Hornet is viewed by the public as a CRIMINAL and scares the crap out of people, that makes a good Seth Rogan comedy?! I'll still go see it because it stars Stephen Chow, but I know I'll hate it.

Why can't Hollywood do these things without irony? Oh, that's right because if you do a movie, like SPEED RACER, without irony you aren't "cool."

Which brings me to the latest news. Apparently, FLASH GORDON is returning to the big screen and they're remaking HIGHLANDER. I would have hopes that the FLASH GORDON might learn from the lessons of the TV show and go retro, but as it is produced by one of the producers of the aforementioned GREEN HORNET I have my doubts. Sure he also produced the new I AM LEGEND, and the director is going to be the guy who directed SAHARA -- and I am one of the 10 people who liked SAHARA -- but anyone who makes GREEN HORNET a Seth Rogan comedy is suspect. Personally, I'd cast Vince Vaughn and play it straight